Blogs and Commentary

NCAA Division II Notebook

When Andrew Conley walked into the office, Florida Tech head
coach Ryan McAleavey wasn't sure what was going on. Conley, a
sophomore attackman for the Panthers, was distraught. One of his
cousins was one of the "Newtown 20" — a victim of the Dec. 14
incident that left numerous schoolchildren dead in Newtown,
Conn.

Conley's cousin was a six-year-old first-grader.

"We sat down and we talked, and he wanted to know if we could do
something," said McAleavey. "Without hesitation, we jumped all over
it."

McAleavey had received a blast email from Jim Fritz, the head
coach at Queens (N.C.) saying that memorial stickers — made
up of the Newtown town seal and a black ribbon — were
available since Fritz had a player on his team from Newtown who
wanted to do something. The Panthers added the sticker to their
helmets, along with the initials of Conley's cousin.

For Florida Tech, Conley's plight has been a motivator of sorts
as the team has dedicated its season to his cousin, Allison
Wyatt.

"The night before our first game with St. Leo, when we were
going over our final game plan, my assistant, Tim King, and I spoke
about what it means to dedicate a season and to be playing for
somebody," McAleavey said. "It was an emotional moment. Once we
showed our emotion, I think the kids really got it — what
this really means to the family, Andrew and to all of us."

Their heart was in the right place, but dedicating a season
doesn't always pay off in wins, especially for a second year
program coming off a 2-12 inaugural campaign.

Or does it?

In the season-opener against Deep South Conference foe Saint Leo
— a team that thumped Tech by nine goals last year —
the Panthers trailed by three in the second quarter. It looked like
business as usual for a team that was trying to find itself, but
McAleavey saw something different in his players.

"There was a timeout, and the guys starting using it as a
rallying cry," McAleavey said of Conley's cousin. "They weren't
going to let Andrew down and the family down. We're doing it for
her. We pumped in four straight goals right after that."

The Panthers went on to beat Saint Leo 16-15, registering their
first-ever conference win. They followed up that up with another
league game, this time against Rollins — a team that defeated
Florida Tech, 15-7 in 2012. Again, it was the Panthers finishing on
top, 9-5, raising their record to 2-0.

"They are motivated," said McAleavey after the Rollins win.
"They're playing together and they're doing it for each other and
for this family. When we talked about it to the team, we said, 'No
matter what we do, we'll never be able to bring her back, but at
least by winning games we might be able to bring a smile to the
family's face.' They really took that to heart. I'll tell you,
they're fighting."

The ride ended last Wednesday in a loss to DSC foe Tampa, 11-7,
but there were positives. Tech scored just two goals against the
Spartans last year. Lindenwood came in on Sunday and beat the
Panthers, as well, evening the record at 2-2.

The team will keep fighting, for the memory of Conley's cousin,
but also to put this young program on the map. McAleavey is
optimistic about the future, especially after what he saw from his
second recruiting class when they arrived on campus.

"On the first day of orientation, instead of those guys hanging
out and getting to know each other, the majority of them were in
the weight room working out," McAleavey said. "The returning
players got wind of that and they started working out. Now we have
the whole team in the weight room in the second day of classes.
Before I could even meet with them, they are taking the initiative
and looking forward to the goals that we're setting."

McAleavey admits that the goals are fluid at this point,
especially in light of the relatively strong start. Put into a
greater perspective, Florida Tech has met the goal that any team
would be proud of – bringing a smile, however briefly, to the
heartbroken.

- As was noted last week, NYIT will be working
with a short roster this year, but it didn't seem to be
a problem in the Bears opener, a 12-11 victory over No. 6
Seton Hill. Luke Miller, who scored four goals and dished out two
assists, proved he was back at full strength after missing a good
chunk of last year.

"Luke proved that he is back from his injury," said NYIT head
coach Bill Dunn. "His play quarterbacking our offense was a big
part of the win. The play of our midfielders — Ryan Brunet,
A.P Nist and Mike Ross — was a turning point, keeping the
Seton Hill midfielders from maintaining ball control for periods of
time in the second half."

- Limestone won the rematch with Dowling, 10-7. The Saints have
a break before back-to-back games with Merrimack and Le
Moyne...interesting start out West. Dominican (Calif.), which was
once Notre Dame de Namur's little brother in the Golden State D-II
scene, obliterated Notre Dame de Namur, 18-3. The Brothers
Bernstein — freshman Cody (3g, 4a) and sophomore Jake (2g,
4a) — lit up the Argos for a combined five goals and eight
assists...staying out West, Pace started out 2-0 with victories
over Adams State and Colorado Mesa...congrats to Ohio Valley
head coach Corey Struss, who won his first game with the Fight
Scots, a 20-1 win over Franciscan...Chris Button had six goals and
an assist as No. 3 Le Moyne rocked No. 9 Chestnut Hill, 16-3...LIU
Post is finding its legs. They defeated a good Saint Rose
team on Sunday, rolling to a 15-6 triumph. Ryan Slane with five
goals for the Pioneers.

- Hayden Kirk (Pfeiffer), Riley Loewen (Limestone), Corey Lunney
(Merrimack), Tor Reinholdt (Limestone) and Brian Scheetz
(Mercyhurst) made the Tewaaraton Award watch list...Joe Roy,
Lindenwood's 6-foot-8 attackman, had a solid weekend. In the Lions'
three games, he finished with seven goals and an assist. Lindenwood
went 2-1 on their Florida swing, and were one bad quarter against
Florida Southern from a sweep...Mount Olive got the best of their
old coach on Sunday. Mike Lawson, who recruited may of the Spartan
players before take in the Wingate job, saw his former team take it
to his current outfit, 13-9.